Mexico City, Mexico — For the first time in history, Mexico will be asking Venezuelan residents to apply for a visa before being allowed in the country. According to the Ministry of the Interior, the request is being made to help stop migration to the U.S.
“The growing trend in the migratory flow of nationals of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in irregular transit to a third country stands out, representing an increase of more than a thousand percent compared to the same period in the previous five years,” the agency said.
According to the Ministry of the Interior, the referred country is the United States. This would be the first time that Mexico has requested a visa from Venezuelans.
Reuters reported in November, that Mexico was studying setting stricter entry requirements for Venezuelans in part, in response to requests from the United States following a sharp increase in arrests of South American nationals at the border who were fleeing the crisis in their country.
Earlier this month, Mexico began requesting visas from Brazilian visitors for a similar reason, noting that INM (Instituto Nacional de Migración) figures show more are entering the country than are leaving.
While a percentage were found overstaying their visa limit in Mexico, others were found using entry into the country as a way to gain illegal access to the U.S.
